A look at the Broadmoor's new Ristorante del Lago

Maybe the best part of our time yesterday with The Broadmoor, when the hotel hosted multiple Indy writers for free, was when the host of our tour of the new Broadmoor West building couldn't remember which room was empty for viewing. One knock later, on a seventh-floor hotel room, and out came the most famous restaurant designer in the world.

The designer of restaurants for Thomas Keller, Daniel Boulud and Jean-Georges Vongerichten, not to mention another Broadmoor restaurant, Summit, reappeared later that night to officially celebrate the opening of one of the vaunted hotel's newest ventures: Ristorante del Lago, which replaces Charles Court but keeps chef Justin Miller at the helm. We brought you a small look at the Italian cuisine in January, with plates ranging between $16 and $36, but last night was the real deal.

"My wife and I had dinner here a couple of nights ago, incognito," he told the crowd. "And it was, I mean, these guys in the kitchen made a spaghetti cacio e pepe that was as good as any any spaghetti cacio e pepe you find in a good restaurant in Rome."

As far as the design, which incorporates exposed wooden beams; an open, bustling kitchen full of new and expensive implements, including an epic prosciutto slicer; and, naturally, considering the name, lake views:

"This, contrary to the common belief, is not an Italian restaurant in terms of design. This is what you think an Italian restaurant should look like," Tihany said to laughter. "Because most restaurants in Italy look pretty shabby." He expounded: "I think most Americans have this Euro-deficiency syndrome: They think that everything in Europe is great. Well, think again."

We'll leave critical notes for future reviews, so check out some pictures of our meal in the meantime, with even more photos from Matthew Schniper available in a slideshow here.